Managing a large web site typically involves editing a large number of files that may include graphics, HyperText Markup Language (HTML), Javascript, stylesheets, applets, and other supporting files. Maintaining a visually appealing and functional web site often involves collating several files and various types of web site software at a particular time and location. Web site developers often desire to work on web sites as a whole and typically would prefer to be able to perform maintenance without affecting the main site.
As web sites have become more dynamic in nature, the HTML pages generated for the end user or consumer are often constructed from a combination of programming scripts (in languages such as PHP or Perl) and database elements, such that the only time the HTML version is seen is typically when the end user is viewing the web site. This dynamic nature has further separated the components that a developer uses to represent the site and the final organization and visualization of the site. Dynamic web pages thus present unique challenges that are insufficiently met by some conventional web page editing applications.